Chapter 24: Cracks in the Façade

Adrian didn't speak for the rest of the night.

Even as the event carried on around them—laughter, music, the occasional camera flash—Olivia could feel the tension radiating from him like a storm barely contained.

She wanted to press him, to demand answers about Madeline, but something in his posture warned her that now wasn't the time.

So she played along.

Smiled when necessary.

Pretended, just like they had been doing all along.

But inside, doubt clawed at her.

What was he hiding?

And why did Madeline seem so sure Olivia didn't know the truth?

—

The car ride home was suffocatingly silent.

Adrian gripped the steering wheel, his jaw tight, eyes locked on the road as if he were barely keeping himself together.

Olivia, sitting in the passenger seat, watched him carefully.

She hated this.

Hated not knowing.

Hated the way her chest twisted every time she looked at him and realized she wasn't sure if she was falling for the man he was—

Or the man he wanted her to believe he was.

Finally, she broke the silence.

"Adrian."

He didn't look at her. "Not now, Carter."

She clenched her fists. "Then when? Because I'm done pretending this doesn't matter."

His fingers tightened on the wheel. "It doesn't."

"Bullshit."

That got his attention.

He glanced at her, something dark flashing in his eyes. "Drop it, Olivia."

She shook her head. "I can't."

A muscle in his jaw twitched.

For a moment, she thought he wouldn't answer.

But then he exhaled, gripping the wheel so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"Madeline is from a past I don't talk about," he said finally. "For a reason."

Olivia's heart pounded. "What reason?"

His lips pressed into a thin line. "Because some betrayals don't deserve to be revisited."

That wasn't enough.

Not for Olivia.

But before she could push further, the car came to a sudden stop.

She blinked, realizing they had arrived at her apartment.

Adrian turned to her, his expression unreadable. "Goodnight, Carter."

It was a dismissal.

And Olivia hated that it stung.

She hesitated for only a second before stepping out of the car, shutting the door behind her.

But as she climbed the stairs to her apartment, her mind was already racing.

Adrian thought he could keep his past buried.

But Olivia was a journalist.

And if there was one thing she knew for sure…

Secrets never stayed hidden forever.